This application claims priority to foreign Argentina Application No. P 02 01 00777, filed on Mar. 4, 2002.
The present invention relates to a HAIR STYLER/DRYER, wherein the operations of styling or drying the hair can be conducting using one hand.
Embodiments included in the prior art and most resembling this invention are hair dryer devices comprising a housing with an electrical motor therein, such motor causing a forced ventilation receiving heat from an electrical resistance through which said heat passes, the hot air flow being expelled by a nozzle, directed to the hair by the user from hand-held means.
Accordingly, the following are registered cases of the prior art, among many other embodiments included in the public domain:
EP 1,070,459 A2, IMPROVEMENTS ON HAIR DRYER APPARATUSES, which discloses a housing having a transversal handgrip.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,317,998, equivalent to the above-referred patent.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,749, HANDS FREE HAIR DRYER, having a table top air generator and axial grip at its flexible hose.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,279,048, HANDS FREE HAIR DRYER AND ACCESSORIES, characterized by its cylindrical air generator, its hose and supporting structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,940,980, HANDS FREE HAIR DRYER, having a semi-rigid hose and spring clamp supporting means.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,956,861, WALL MOUNTABLE HAIR DRYER AND SUPPORT, to be used by holding the end of its hose.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,691,451, HAIR DRYER, having external heat screen oriented towards the air flow.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,112,591, HAIR DRYER; characterized by a pliable hood.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,651,190, HANDS FREE HAIR DRYER, provided with hood and self-contained power supply.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,761,825, HANDS FREE HAIR DRYER AND SUPPORT.
WO 99/01049, DRYER WITH BATTERY CHARGER DEVICE, on which said dryer is placed when not in use to recharge its storage battery.
PCT/EP 99/05039, HAIR DRYER ACCESORY, having penetrating nozzles to penetrate the hair mass.
WO 01/15568 A1, HOT AIR DIFFUSER ACCESSORY BRUSH FOR HANDHELD HAIR DRYERS, having coupling means and internal tube with radial outlets.
Unlike the present invention which was conceived for both hair brushing and ironing purposes, all of the foregoing are hair dryers or its accessories intended for hair drying only, except for WO 01/15568 A1, which teaches a cylindrical brush for brushing purposes. As disclosed, said brush is not capable of independent rotation from the dryer, i.e., both the brush and the dryer make the rotation motion necessary for brushing purposes as a unit, a motion which is limited by the twisting of its supply cable. In addition, this accessory cannot be used for hair ironing, as opposed to that for which the present application was conceived.
In the other cases, the brushing operation comprises the steps of running a cylindrical brush towards the hair ends and concomitantly rotating said brush on the hair internal layers, while simultaneously receiving the drying provision of the hot air flow over external layers, produced by the hair dryer.
This means that when taking the invention to practice, the user has to handle the brush with one hand while holding the dryer externally oriented to the brushed area with the other hand, which forces said user to adopt awkward positions that make impossible, especially in some areas, for the user to style his or her own hair.
Furthermore, by using the foregoing method a heterogeneous drying between the hair external layers, more exposed to the hot air flow, and the hair internal layers which while damp, oppose resistance to styling action and when dried are subjected to an excessive drying because of the external provision of hot air on the external layers, is achieved.
For hair ironing, a function also contemplated within the scope of this invention by simply changing the accessories, the prior art includes hair irons comprising a pair of tongs, having flat metal blades heated by an electrical resistance contained therein; when tong blades are in the open position, hair is placed between them, and when they come together, hair is pressed against them, so that straightening is achieved by running the closed tong blades thereon.
In addition to having been conceived for this application only, said hair irons have several drawbacks, e.g. cumbersome heat regulation, electrical hazards, and potential damage to hair due to excessive heat application.
The present invention aims at overcoming the foregoing problems, by optimizing hair brushing and ironing actions.
The main object of this Patent application is providing a styling device comprising a hot air supply to which the corresponding brushing and styling accessories are alternatively attached, so as to perform both actions using only one hand. This allows the necessary rotation of the brush for hair brushing purposes, and heating the iron accessories by air flow; in addition there is no damage potential, homogenous drying, and in the absence of said accessories, said device acts as a simple hair dryer.
Essentially, a hot air generator contained in a housing is provided. Its bottom anatomically fits the external metacarpal region of the hand, for which purpose it is provided with a preferably elastic, rear wrist band; said band has fastening means and a front lower elastic ring, through which a finger of the same hand passes, thus enabling its conductive action.
From the front side area of the above-referred hot air generatorxe2x80x94this being provided with slots, an air inlet, supply cable and an on-off switchxe2x80x94a rigid aeration tube inclined with respect to the frontal space is projected, with fine tuning capabilities of rotation and obliquity to optimize air flow orientation through its lower longitudinal outlet.
From an equivalent area but corresponding to the opposite side, a bending hose projects, the connection of which with the housing allows free rotation, and the opposite end of which is similarly attached to a handgrip having a longitudinal passing-through tube that allows hot air to flow therein, towards the distal coupling means; said coupling means are to be axially connected either to the cylindrical brush intended for brushing purposes, or to the corresponding accessory for ironing purposes, which accessory is complemented by another one, coupled to the above-referred rigid aeration tube outlet, that is removably connected by means of a dovetail joint.
The brush above features a cylindrical body having a longitudinal tube continuing the handgrip tube, and a plurality or perimetric holes arranged along its wall, with filaments through which the hot air emerges.
Iron accessories consist of hollow chambers with respective coupling means, the actuating plates of which have a smooth outerxe2x80x94ideally metallicxe2x80x94surface, provided with outlet holes for hot air, distributed throughout the surface; the one to be mounted to the handgrip has a plurality of internal partitions, intended to form a labyrinthical air flow path, thus promoting use of heat to the greatest advantage.
According to the above described arrangement and in order to conduct the brushing operation, the cylindrical brush is to be attached to the handgrip and then, holding the generator with the hand, proceed to direct the hot air flow coming from the rigid aeration tube towards the outer hair layers; at the same time, while holding the handgrip with same hand, the cylindrical brush contacts the hair internal layers for rotation, concomitantly with ventilation from its perimetric holes, so as to produce contemporaneous hair styling and homogeneous drying between both hot air flows.
In order to conduct hair ironing, the above described accessories should be attached as follows: one to the aeration rigid tube, and the other to the handgrip coupling means, thus positioning the first one facing the hair external layers, while the second one is brought close to the internal layers by using the same hand, until the hair mass is trapped between both smooth surfaces; a mild pressure should be exercised to provide concomitant sliding motion for ironing and heat provision.
Without departing from the functional principle above-described, an alternative variation is also contemplated, i.e., the option to have the hot air generator source not held by the user""s hand, but connected at a certain distance to the handgrip, by means of a longer hose, in a similar manner to the basic conception described above; however, in this case, the rotating coupling means features a derivation obtained by the flexible tube to the aeration tube, which is non-rotatably connected to said coupling means, by an overhead hinged arm at a transverse axis, provided with an extension spring that tends to keep the handgrip and the aeration tube parallel, between the spring strain and a back end.
The aeration tube support has a lower trigger, intended to bring said support close to the handgrip axial projection, thus breaking the parallel configuration when over passing the expansion strain of the spring, with the thumb of the same hand holding the handgrip.
This way, the brushing operation is implemented by placing the hair between the aeration tube and the cylindrical brush attached to the rotating handgrip, separated from each other in a parallel configuration, to conduct brushing operation by rotation, from the internal layers of the hair mass.
In order to conduct the ironing operation, once the corresponding accessories have been attached, the only requirement is that hair is placed between both smooth faces and then bring said faces close to each other, with the thumb on the trigger, until sliding pressure thereof results in the simultaneous hair straightening and heat drying.
As commonly found in some hair salons, this alternative variation can be also applied to fixed air flow installations, by connecting the flexible hose to one of the network outlets; hot air may be fed in a pre-heated condition or by means of self-contained heat source.